Proposed Rules - Agricultural Marketing Service

25969
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
Vol. 80, No. 87
Wednesday, May 6, 2015
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 900
[Docket No. AMS–FV–14–0072; FV14–900–
2 PR]
Clarification of United States Antitrust
Laws, Immunity, and Liability Under
Marketing Order Programs
Agricultural Marketing Service,
USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
This proposal invites
comments on an amendment to the
general regulations for federal fruit,
vegetable, and specialty crop marketing
agreements and marketing orders that
would accentuate the applicability of
U.S. antitrust laws to marketing order
programs’ domestic and foreign
activities. This action would also advise
marketing order board and committee
members and personnel of the
restrictions, limitations, and liabilities
imposed by those laws.
DATES: Comments must be received by
June 5, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
invited to submit written comments
concerning this proposal. Comments
must be sent to the Docket Clerk,
Marketing Order and Agreement
Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program,
AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence
Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington,
DC 20250–0237; Fax: (202) 720–8938; or
Internet: http://www.regulations.gov. All
comments should reference the
document number and the date and
page number of this issue of the Federal
Register and will be made available for
public inspection in the Office of the
Docket Clerk during regular business
hours or can be viewed at: http://
www.regulations.gov. All comments
submitted in response to this proposal
will be included in the record and will
be made available to the public. Please
be advised that the identity of the
individuals or entities submitting the
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SUMMARY:
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comments will be made public on the
internet at the address provided above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Geronimo Quinones, Marketing
Specialist, or Michelle P. Sharrow,
Rulemaking Branch Chief, Marketing
Order and Agreement Division, Fruit
and Vegetable Program, AMS, USDA,
1400 Independence Avenue SW., Stop
0237, Washington, DC 20250–0237;
Telephone: (202) 720–2491, Fax: (202)
720–8938, or Email:
[email protected] or
[email protected]
Small businesses may request
information on complying with this
regulation by contacting Jeffrey Smutny,
Marketing Order and Agreement
Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program,
AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence
Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington,
DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720–
2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or Email:
[email protected]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
proposal is issued under the general
regulations for federal marketing
agreements and orders (7 CFR part 900),
effective under the Agricultural
Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as
amended (7 U.S.C. 601–674), hereinafter
referred to as the ‘‘Act.’’ This action
would add a new § 900.202 (Restrictions
applicable to Committee personnel)
under ‘‘Subpart—Miscellaneous
Regulations’’ to accentuate the
applicability of U.S. antitrust laws to
marketing order program activities.
The Department of Agriculture
(USDA) is issuing this proposed rule in
conformance with Executive Orders
12866, 13563, and 13175.
This proposal has been reviewed
under Executive Order 12988, Civil
Justice Reform. This proposed rule is
not intended to have retroactive effect.
The Act provides that administrative
proceedings must be exhausted before
parties may file suit in court. Under
section 608c(15)(A) of the Act, any
handler subject to an order may file
with USDA a petition stating that the
order, any provision of the order, or any
obligation imposed in connection with
the order is not in accordance with law
and request a modification of the order
or to be exempted therefrom. A handler
is afforded the opportunity for a hearing
on the petition. After the hearing, USDA
would rule on the petition. The Act
provides that the district court of the
United States in any district in which
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the handler is an inhabitant, or has his
or her principal place of business, has
jurisdiction to review USDA’s ruling on
the petition, provided an action is filed
not later than 20 days after the date of
the entry of the ruling.
Federal marketing order boards and
committees have always been subject to
U.S. antitrust laws. These boards and
committees work with USDA in
administering marketing order programs
which, among other things, authorizes
them, with approval of the Secretary, to
establish and promote a program’s
domestic and foreign marketing
activities. The Act immunizes board and
committee members and employees
from prosecution under U.S. antitrust
laws so long as their conduct is
authorized by the Act or provisions of
a marketing order. This proposal is
intended to accentuate the applicability
of U.S. antitrust laws to marketing order
board and committee members and
personnel in light of changing global
marketing and production trends as well
as to advise boards and committees of
the restrictions, limitations, and
liabilities of those laws. Under these
laws, Committee members and
employees may not engage in any
unauthorized agreement or concerted
action that unreasonably restrains
United States domestic or foreign
commerce. Failing to adhere to antitrust
laws may lead to prosecution under the
antitrust laws by the United States
Department of Justice and/or suit by
injured private persons seeking treble
damages, and may also result in
expulsion of members from the
Committee or termination of
employment with the Committee.
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Act
Pursuant to requirements set forth in
the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) (5
U.S.C. 601–612), the Agricultural
Marketing Service (AMS) has
considered the economic impact of this
action on small entities. Accordingly,
AMS has prepared this initial regulatory
flexibility analysis.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit
regulatory actions to the scale of
businesses subject to such actions in
order that small businesses will not be
unduly or disproportionately burdened.
Marketing orders issued pursuant to the
Act, and rules issued thereunder, are
unique in that they are brought about
through group action of essentially
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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 87 / Wednesday, May 6, 2015 / Proposed Rules
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small entities acting on their own
behalf.
There are approximately 1,090
handlers who are subject to regulation
under the 28 federal marketing order
programs and approximately 33,100
producers in the regulated areas. Small
agricultural service firms are defined by
the Small Business Administration
(SBA) as those having annual receipts of
less than $7,000,000, and small
agricultural producers are defined as
those having annual receipts of less than
$750,000 (13 CFR 121.201). USDA
estimates that many of these handlers
and producers may be classified as
small entities. This rule would
accentuate the applicability of U.S.
antitrust laws to marketing order
programs’ domestic and foreign
activities. This action would also advise
marketing order board and committee
members and personnel of the
restrictions, limitations, and liabilities
imposed by those laws.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule contains no information
collection or recordkeeping
requirements under the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501–
3520).
AMS is committed to complying with
the E-Government Act, to promote the
use of the internet and other
information technologies to provide
increased opportunities for citizen
access to Government information and
services, and for other purposes.
USDA has not identified any relevant
Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or
conflict with this proposed rule.
AMS has discussed the changes to the
regulations with all marketing order
board and committee staff that it
oversees. Moreover, AMS conducted
refresher training on antitrust laws for
marketing order board and committee
staff and officers at the Marketing Order
Management Conference on September
23–24, 2014. Finally, interested persons
are invited to submit comments on this
proposed rule, including the regulatory
and informational impacts of this action
on small businesses.
A small business guide on complying
with fruit, vegetable, and specialty crop
marketing agreements and orders may
be viewed at: www.ams.usda.gov/
MarketingOrdersSmallBusinessGuide.
Any questions about the compliance
guide should be sent to Jeffrey Smutny
at the previously mentioned address in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section.
A 30-day comment period is provided
to allow interested persons to respond
to this proposal. Thirty days is deemed
appropriate because federal marketing
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order boards and committees have
always been subject to U.S. antitrust
laws. AMS is simply updating the
regulations to reemphasize the
applicability of U.S. antitrust laws in
light of global marketing and production
trends. All written comments timely
received will be considered before a
final determination is made on this
matter.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 900
Administrative practice and
procedure, Freedom of information,
Marketing agreements, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
For the reasons set forth above, 7 CFR
part 900 is proposed to be amended as
follows:
unauthorized agreement or joint
undertaking could result in prosecution
under the antitrust laws by the United
States Department of Justice and/or suit
by injured private persons seeking treble
damages, and could also result in
expulsion of members from the
Committee or termination of
employment with the Committee.
Dated: April 30, 2015.
Rex A. Barnes,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural
Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2015–10447 Filed 5–5–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–02–P
DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
PART 900—GENERAL REGULATIONS
Internal Revenue Service
■
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR
part 900 continues to read as follows:
26 CFR Part 1
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–674 and 7 U.S.C.
7401.
[REG–132634–14]
Subpart—Miscellaneous Regulations
2. The authority citation for Subpart—
Miscellaneous Regulations continues to
read as follows:
■
Authority: Sec. 10, 48 Stat. 37, as
amended; 7 U.S.C. 610.
3. Add new section 900.202 to read as
follows:
■
§ 900.202 Restrictions applicable to
Committee personnel.
Members and employees of Federal
marketing order boards and committees
are immune from prosecution under the
United States antitrust laws only insofar
as their conduct in administering the
respective marketing order is authorized
by the Agricultural Marketing
Agreement Act of 1937, 7 U.S.C. 601–
674, or the provisions of the respective
order. Under the antitrust laws,
Committee members and employees
may not engage in any unauthorized
agreement or concerted action that
unreasonably restrains United States
domestic or foreign commerce. For
example, Committee members and
employees have no authority to
participate, either directly or indirectly,
whether on an informal or formal,
written or oral basis, in any bilateral or
international undertaking or agreement
with any competing foreign producer or
seller or with any foreign government,
agency, or instrumentality acting on
behalf of competing foreign producers
or sellers to (a) raise, fix, stabilize, or set
a floor for commodity prices, or (b) limit
the quantity or quality of commodity
imported into or exported from the
United States. Participation in any such
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RIN 1545–BM43
Qualifying Income From Activities of
Publicly Traded Partnerships With
Respect to Minerals or Natural
Resources
Internal Revenue Service (IRS),
Treasury.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
AGENCY:
This document contains
proposed regulations under section
7704(d)(1)(E) of the Internal Revenue
Code (Code) relating to qualifying
income from exploration, development,
mining or production, processing,
refining, transportation, and marketing
of minerals or natural resources. The
proposed regulations affect publicly
traded partnerships and their partners.
DATES: Comments and requests for a
public hearing must be received by
August 4, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Send submissions to:
CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG–132634–14), Room
5203, Internal Revenue Service, P.O.
Box 7604, Ben Franklin Station,
Washington, DC 20044. Submissions
may be hand-delivered Monday through
Friday between the hours of 8 a.m. and
4 p.m. to CC:PA:LPD:PR (REG–132634–
14), Courier’s Desk, Internal Revenue
Service, 1111 Constitution Avenue NW.,
Washington, DC, or sent electronically,
via the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
www.regulations.gov (IRS REG–132634–
14).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Concerning the proposed regulations,
Caroline E. Hay at (202) 317–5279;
concerning the submissions of
comments and requests for a public
SUMMARY:
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